As I was watching Episode 15, I couldn’t help wishing this part of the plot had happened at the halfway point rather than three-quarters of the way to the end. If this shift in family dynamics had come at the midpoint, I think I would have been a lot more excited about the dramatic possibilities, but since it comes after so much dragging of feet, it loses a lot of its potential. Still, we’ve got some fantastic acting, again by Lee Mi-sook and Seo Woo, the latter of whom really kicks it up a notch.

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EPISODE 15 RECAP

After reading her father’s journals, Hyo-sun throws open the doors and storms into her mother’s room. Shooting Kang-sook a venomous look, she starts throwing Kang-sook’s clothing and even chucks a suitcase at her, screaming, “Get out!”

Too bad it’s only in her head. And Urgggh is all I can say about the fake-out. I understand the reasons for it, but I hated the drama when it did it to us with Eun-jo comforting Hyo-sun in her imagination, and I hate it now.

In actuality, Hyo-sun stands outside the door, poised to enact her imaginary scenario, but finally turns and leaves. On the other side of the door, Kang-sook sits tensed, bracing herself for the confrontation that doesn’t happen.

In her room, Hyo-sun tells a photo of her father that she was about to ask how Kang-sook could do such a thing to him, and that she could have kicked her out. “But I didn’t, Dad. I don’t want to drive her away so simply. Because I don’t want to settle this so easily, I held back.” She tells her father to wait to see how she handles this. Ooh, scary!

An unpredictable Hyo-sun is by far more alarming than an outwardly angry one, as Kang-sook finds out the next morning. Hyo-sun surprises her in the hallway, eyeing her coldly, and figures that Dear Mother is going to tell Eun-jo what happened. Hyo-sun will not allow that, as she explains in a calm, almost friendly tone that makes the harshness of the words that much more unnerving.

“You don’t have to do that. Mo. Ther,” she says, with a particular emphasis on mother. Her voice takes on a menacing edge as she continues, “If she finds out, things will get noisy, and I don’t want that. Just let this go, quietly. Don’t do a thing. Just live quietly as the lady of the house. As my mother.”

And then she reverts to a perfectly normal voice to say that Eun-jo has gone out to handle contract matters. Kang-sook’s left wondering what the heck just hit her. I’m calling it karma, lady.

Now that the machinery rental has been canceled, Ki-hoon goes around asking old friends and contacts for favors. So dire is his need that he doesn’t even really ASK so much as he informs his contact what he needs. He knows he’s being pushy, but desperation doesn’t have time to stop for etiquette classes.

Unsuccessful with one contact, he moves on to the next, who hangs up on him. He calls back to tell the man that he WILL meet with him, because he refuses to give up until he gets his meeting. Which… kinda freaks me out a little, Ki-hoon buddy. I guess it’s a good thing Koreans aren’t as into restraining orders as us litigious Yanks.

Hyo-sun relays the message that Ki-jung wants to meet Eun-jo, and her new change in attitude doesn’t appear to extend to her sister. This makes me curious to know how Hyo-sun’s burning desire for revenge relates to Eun-jo, and if she’ll get the same treatment as Kang-sook.

Whatever she’s thinking and whatever the extent of her suspicions, this right here is the crucial moment. Hyo-sun casually asks about this man named Jang, wondering if Eun-jo’s absolutely certain that there’s nobody like that in Kang-sook’s family. Eun-jo tenses, as though scared she knows the truth, and answers that there’s no such guy. Hyo-sun looks at her closely, then says, “Okay. I see.” There’s a finality to this, as though she has concluded that if Eun-jo’s not on her side, she must be on Mom’s.

Eun-jo expects Hyo-sun to come with her to meet Ki-jung, but Hyo-sun plans to stay at home because it seems Mom needs her. The words aren’t that strange, but there’s a dissonance between the words and the way she says them that unsettles Eun-jo. Growing uneasy, Eun-jo calls her mother. Getting no response, she seeks out Jung-woo to tell him urgently that Jang ajusshi mustn’t — mustn’t! — appear again, ever.

Jung-woo assures her that he won’t, that he made clear that if he ever needs money, he will call Jung-woo instead of Eun-jo.

Hyo-sun finds Kang-sook packing kimbap rolls in the kitchen, and pops a piece into her mouth. Kang-sook is so anxious over Hyo-sun’s behavior that a simple compliment has her on edge.

This isn’t helped by the phone call Hyo-sun accepts from a grandmother, particularly when Hyo-sun asks, “What about my mother?” Kang-sook eyes her warily as Hyo-sun continues in a conciliatory tone, “I don’t know what you’re going to say, but don’t say it, Grandma. I’ll come see you soon, so don’t say it now.”

Ki-hoon drops in on Ki-jung to ask his brother to tell him how far he’s going to take this, which seems like a pretty naive thing for him to do. (“I know you’re my enemy, and I’ve pissed you off and you’ve pissed me off, but could you just let me know what you’re planning against me? ‘Cause… it would really help me fight back against you. Kthxbai.”)

Ki-jung replies that he can’t tell him because he doesn’t know himself — but he’s intending to take this “to the end.” Wait, so he DOES know, then? Ah, whatever, this is just a scene to get Ki-hoon to freak out about being caught chatting it up with Big Bro, as he does when Ki-jung says with false concern that he’d better leave before Eun-jo arrives.

Ki-hoon takes the elevator down, and sure enough, when the doors open, there she is in front of him. Omo! What will she do? Flash him the evil eye? Accuse him of betrayal? Jump to conclusions? Give this drama some much-needed plot movement?

None of the above, alas. She’s so wrapped up in her thoughts that she steps into the elevator right in front of Ki-hoon and doesn’t even notice him. Which… is a really random way to blow hot air into that balloon and then pop it immediately before we have a chance to wonder where that balloon is headed, or what it was even for.

Eun-jo goes up to meet with Ki-jung, who proposes that rather than using Japanese capital to get Dae-sung Co. back on its feet, it would be more desirable to use Hong Ju funds. It’s a pleasant way to propose takeover, and Eun-jo knows it. Ki-jung lays out his proposal plainly: He’ll support her continuous research with yeast, and he’ll let Dae-sung Co. keep its name, since it has built up a solid reputation that is worth preserving.

Contrary to his expectation, however, Eun-jo tells him, “Thank you.” She says that he has just confirmed the vast potential of Dae-sung Co., because it must be quite valuable for the nation’s top liquor company to attempt to swallow them up. She adds, “You’ve given me the strength to rise back up.” In fact, if her yeast is worth the amount he offered, then its market value is several times that. She’d be a fool to sell now, wouldn’t she?

You can practically see the thought bubble forming above Ki-jung’s head that reads “Fuuu…uuu…c….k…” just as Eun-jo thanks him again, then adds, “I won’t forget what you have done to us, not a single thing. I’ll pay you back, so wait and see.”

The reverse power dynamic now means that Kang-sook finds herself uneasily going along with everything Hyo-sun suggests, such as going to pick up Jun-su from kindergarten even though he’s perfectly able to take the bus home.

Still speaking in that polite, calm tone (despite the death glares leveled Mom-ward when the latter isn’t looking), Hyo-sun suggests getting a family photo taken. It’s too bad they never did one when Dad was alive, but it’s better late than never. Ironic that they should pose as a happy family now, after the illusion has been stripped away.

Hyo-sun’s feigned warmth scares Kang-sook — it makes Hyo-sun seem erratic and unpredictable — and she watches warily as Hyo-sun plays with Jun-su. Kang-sook finds her dangerous in a way that belies her innocent appearance, and thinks to herself:

Kang-sook’s narration: “That little thing dares to challenge me without any fear — me, Song Kang-sook, who fought with God and Buddha and won. I’ve never been afraid of either God or Buddha, but that girl who’s barely been a puppy for a day now bares her teeth. That day-old puppy is more frightening to me than a ghost.”

Kang-sook slips away to rush home while her children are playing on the playground, hurriedly packing her belongings and running to the bus stop. The same bus stop where Dae-sung had once come to stop her from leaving, where she now sobs to herself.

Kang-sook’s narration: “This dirty bitch’s fate… Looking at it now, the dirtiest thing in my destiny was this house. God, Buddha, thank you for showing me this now. Finally, you have come to your senses.”

The bus pulls up to the stop — but oh no, that little teeth-baring puppy isn’t about to let one dirty bitch go so easily, and comes running from a distance, shouting after her to stay put. Kang-sook hurries onto the bus and sits anxiously as it pulls away.

Hyo-sun stumbles over her heels and kicks them off (and honestly, given that she had to spend a few seconds putting her shoes on after entering the house, don’tcha think she could’ve opted for something a little more appropriate for a chase than four-inch heels?). She runs after the bus in her bare feet, and when the driver sees her in his mirror, he ignores Kang-sook’s panicked instructions to keep going and stops.

Hyo-sun gets on the bus, panting and glowering. She pulls Kang-sook off and keeps one hand firmly grasping her mother’s shirt to prevent escape.

That doesn’t prevent Kang-sook from trying, though, and thus begins my favorite sequence in this episode, because it weaves a darkly humorous thread through an emotionally charged exchange. (Kang-sook’s histrionics at Dae-sung’s funeral are another example.)

Kang-sook runs, Hyo-sun runs after her, and the tussle sends them both slipping on the rough grass and rolling in the dirt path.

Kang-sook screams that Hyo-sun is a freaky ghost-like (as in scary, not as in dead) girl, but Hyo-sun glares fiercely and tells her that she ain’t going nowhere, nuh-uh — she’s going to stay right where she is and live under Hyo-sun’s thumb: “If I wanted to see you running away, I would have kicked you out. Did you think I’d just leave you alone?” Hyo-sun declares that this is a secret between them two and the heavens. So keep that mouth shut.

Kang-sook tells Hyo-sun to curse at her instead, to call her a bitch or a slut — how can she smile pleasantly and call her “Mom”? “You’re a hundred times scarier than I am, do you know that?!”

Hyo-sun bursts out that if not for Jun-su, she’d do just that. But how could she curse her brother — her father’s son? “Should I give it a try? Should I spit in Jun-su’s face and call you a slut?” Kang-sook dares her to, but Hyo-sun screams that she can’t do that to her father.

Now Kang-sook starts to sob in earnest, but Hyo-sun isn’t about to allow her to soothe her and pushes her back. She warns Kang-sook not to dare apologize, because she wouldn’t believe her anyway.

Hyo-sun: “Are you going to beg for my forgiveness, Mom? The person you should beg to is DEAD, so why are you acting like this to me? Live like that for the rest of your life, as a sinner. Do you think I’d forgive you? Do you think I’d let you live with a clear conscience?!”

Now Hyo-sun screams as she cries, wailing at the unfairness of it all.

The women hobble along back to the house, both the worse for wear after their scuffle. Hyo-sun limps behind her mother, her feet paining her. Kang-sook looks down at her injuries — Hyo-sun raises her chin defiantly, as if daring her, “So what?” — then kneels in front of Hyo-sun, telling her to get on her back, “you awful girl.”

Thus Kang-sook carries Hyo-sun home. The piggyback ride is so often used to convey romantic subtext that I really like the dissonance this creates in this moment, because both ladies would really not prefer to be in this situation. I’d imagine that if I felt this level of disgust or anger toward another person, I’d hate merely looking at them, much less touching them. So one can only imagine the incredible discomfort and enmity that these two feel between them, along every point of contact.

Eun-jo has been trying to get a hold of Ki-hoon all day, to no avail, so when he finally shows up at home, she’s angry enough to tell him to sign his resignation. However, that dissipates when he tells her that he finally managed to get one of his contacts to cooperate with them. Therefore, they now have a replacement for their canceled yeast-testing machine, but strict stipulations come with the agreement.

In addition to a high price and an agreement to cooperate with them in the yeast research, Ki-hoon must come to work for their company. His contact is a sunbae from when he studied abroad in the States, and has declared that Ki-hoon is needed at their company. He agreed, because that’s the only way for them to get Dae-sung Co. back on its feet and stand strong enough that they can withstand attempts to mess with them.

The moment that he tells her the last condition, it’s like the light goes out of Eun-jo and she sits in a dull daze long after he leaves. An hour later, Jung-woo looks at her worriedly, urging her to move or do something.

Eun-jo: “From a long time ago, the morning sunrise wasn’t fun for me at all. I’d either open my eyes in some man’s house or in a motel room. The sound I heard most was my mother slinging slurs, and the swears thrown back by her men. The sound of households breaking, things like that. But one day, I didn’t hear that sound. I figured that after a short while, I’d start to hear it again. This peace would be broken anyway, so I didn’t believe in it. If I believed and it betrayed me, I’d be the one hurting. But even though many days passed, I didn’t hear my mother slinging slurs. On top of that, the sunrise started to become fun for me — I wanted to go to sleep at night, because that’s how morning would come. If I slept and woke up, then I would start my day with that person. Whenever I turned my head, there was this person I was happy to see. I didn’t dare hope for much. If I came back from going somewhere, that was enough that he was there. If I didn’t see him for a short while and then saw him suddenly, I was happy as though seeing him for the first time in a million years. That was enough for me. But like that was hoping for too much, he went away so I couldn’t see him again, when all I needed was to see him. But now he’s going away again. He says he’s going. Living… really sucks.”

Feeling for her, Jung-woo half-seriously offers to keep Ki-hoon from leaving by breaking his leg. So desperate is she that she asks hopefully, “Could you do that?” She then tries to convince herself that this is a good thing for them all, although she fools nobody.

I think I’d feel a lot more for Eun-jo if she hadn’t repeatedly pushed Ki-hoon away and swore to kill him multiple times whenever he tried to approach. Sure this sucks for her, but you only get to insist you don’t want something so many times before you lose sympathy points at actually losing it. Looks like the Drama Gods are calling your bluff, Eun-jo.

Entering the house, Eun-jo hears loud voices and sees Hyo-sun and Kang-sook fighting — Kang-sook is attempting to put medicine on Hyo-sun’s feet, but the latter isn’t having it. Upon Eun-jo’s entrance, they stop arguing and Hyo-sun smiles at Eun-jo, then shoots Kang-sook a look designed to say, “You’d better play along or I’ll make you regret it.”

Modulating her voice, Hyo-sun says that she was crying out because Mom is applying the medicine too harshly, and sweetly asks her to do it more gently.

Kang-sook complies, and Eun-jo leaves the room, her suspicions assuaged for now. Which makes me think Eun-jo’s a heckuva lot more self-absorbed than I’d thought — you’d have to be a grade-A narcissist to miss those hate vibes. Sure she’s hurting, but that doesn’t make her blind.

At breakfast, Hyo-sun and Kang-sook continue their cold war while Eun-jo eats, missing the glares traded back and forth. However, she does notice the oddness of Hyo-sun oversalting her food as though it’s nothing. Yet when Eun-jo tastes it, it makes her gag.

Feeling that Hyo-sun is burning with fever, Eun-jo drags her to bed, ignoring her sister’s claims that she’s perfectly fine. She orders her to rest up and wait for the doctor, while Kang-sook keeps watch.

Hyo-sun fights back and shoots daggers at Kang-sook, who sighs heavily, “I’ve committed so many sins that you must have been brought to me through fate. So this is my punishment.”

When Eun-jo arrives at the winery, she hears the unexpected sound of laughter coming from the storeroom, where she sees Ki-hoon tasting makgulli with a woman. He escorts her to her car and sends her off cheerfully.

Ki-hoon joins Eun-jo to give her the documents regarding the estimated costs. Eun-jo goes through the motions of reading, but she’s fixated on his contact and comments that she sure laughed a lot. And he laughed a lot with her.

She tells Ki-hoon that the job change is good for him — he should have been working for a big company to start with. The only reason he stayed after Dae-sung died was because he didn’t have an excuse to go, right? In her usual manner, Eun-jo is pre-emptively closing the door and deciding what the truth must be, because hoping for more and being disappointed is more hurtful than not hoping at all. Better to expect the worst, then get the worst. Too bad she hasn’t figured out that she’s actually inviting the worst.

Hyo-sun is treated by the Oriental doctor, and is sleeping when Kang-sook checks on her. Suddenly Hyo-sun starts moaning in her sleep, saying in a pained voice, “Don’t… don’t run away” while tears fall from her eyes.

Kang-sook addresses her wedding photo to tell Dae-sung, “You’re really being cruel in your punishment. You and your daughter are a lot tougher than I am.”

Ki-jung is dealt another blow when he receives the report that Dae-sung Co. has managed to start up production again. On top of that, they have a buyer — Ki-hoon has managed to persuade their Japanese contact to buy from them instead of Hong Ju. Furthermore, market research in Japan has concluded that the Dae-sung makgulli tastes much better than Hong Ju’s brand. Ki-jung tries to contain his fury and asks if there’s anything further. To which Director Park takes out a letter and presents it to him — his resignation. And the hits just keep coming, don’t they?

At the Dae-sung factory, Eun-jo enjoys a brief moment of basking in the satisfaction of seeing production rolling again… but it’s only for a moment, because she gets a call from Dong-soo, who is a character whose purpose in this story still eludes me. (He’s a plot device, for sure, but is that all he is?)

Dong-soo confirms that Hong Ju was the company that interfered in their Japan sales incident. And there’s one more thing that’s weird… Did she know that Ki-hoon is the youngest son in that Hong family?

Ki-hoon comes in bearing good news, and holds up a business magazine with Dae-sung’s face on the cover, the headline of which touts their new yeast discovery. With a smiling face, he announces, “It’s all over now, Eun-jo.” Oh, you have NO idea, unsuspecting Ki-hoon!

COMMENTS

I love when the setup changes in a drama, so I welcome the change in Hyo-sun, which shifts the story on its axis and makes things more about her than about Eun-jo. In fact, I thought Eun-jo was quite peripheral in this episode, and didn’t really care about her storyline that much. (Then again, nothing much really happened with her so there’s less to get excited about.)

It made me feel some disappointment, however, that this big shift didn’t happen earlier, back when I was still invested in the characters and their tribulations. I’m still watching and enjoying the acting, but I started to check out emotionally with all the stalemating going on a few episodes ago, and this isn’t enough to bring me back to enthusiastic levels. But imagine if Hyo-sun vowed revenge at the end of Episode 8, or even 10 — then her decision would’ve elicited an “Ohh, shit” reaction from me (and I suspect, a lot of other viewers). Back then, it would have mattered — it would have been a game-changer — and I would have sat up and taken notice. However, at Episode 15, I’ve pretty much given up hoping for progress from these people.

I fear that this drama never had enough plot in the makgulli wars, because I just don’t think they’re very interesting. I’ve been spoiled by shows like Story of A Man, where the schemes and business machinations were a whole lotta fun to watch unfold. I didn’t know a thing about stocks and money manipulation, but they made it exciting and fun and a real thrill ride of suspense — who would win this week? Good Guys or the Bad Guys? And the winner each week was the one who deserved to win because he had skillfully outmaneuvered the other.

Here though, we’ve got a plain tug of war. Two sides pulling one rope. Every once in a while, the Bad Guy gets some secret help from an invisible machine that does its magic voodoo and gains ground for its side, until the Good Guys pull back. Back and forth. Ho-hum.

The Hyo-sun shift, on the other hand, is a lot more interesting. I love that Hyo-sun is trapping Kang-sook in her own lie — this is the illusion Kang-sook forced upon her husband and stepdaughter. The brilliance in Hyo-sun’s retaliation — wherein she hasn’t even done much to “punish” Kang-sook actively — is that life must continue as normal, only now Hyo-sun is the one in control. Just when Kang-sook realizes that the house (and her greed for its possessions) is the “dirtiest thing in [her] destiny,” Hyo-sun refuses to give her an out.

I have to say i loved this episode. the most powerful so far. I agree that this dynamic should have happened earlier, but then we wouldn’t have really seen what a dramatic change in character it would have been for hyosun and kang sook.

Wow, I knew there’s more to HS then just meet the eyes. I love how she’s using KS tactic to fight back but I’m a bit confused. She seems to be at a cold war with KS but she’s on good terms with EJ. So she doesn’t want to take everything out on EJ or is this just the start and later she’s going to go after EJ too.

*sigh I’m a bit tired with the drama too. Come on, just give us that happy ending already and at least let us be happy for the four remaining episodes. I’m always so drain after watching CS. I’m only hanging on because I want to see some light for the characters. Thanks a lot JB for recapping, although I complain I still love CS. =P

Hi I haven’t watched the last couple of episodes yet because I like you also checked out emotionally. I’m just waiting for the drama to finish completely before picking up where I left off to save myself from pulling my hair out. I skimmed to through your recap though and it’s interesting that you mentioned about how the current events should’ve happened a few eps ago.

Javabeans did you read about the whole drama that went on @ DC with the PD? Apparently he posted a long message on there explaining to fans about what’s going on with the show (though it has now been deleted). I caught a chance to read a translation of the message before it disappeared and he basically said that after episode 4, the director changed because the feel of the show wasn’t going how the heads in charge wanted it to. They said that he was making too fairytale-like and that wasn’t what they were aiming for. He also said that at the start he pushed for 20 eps rather than 16 because he wasn’t sure it would do well in ratings right from the start (that would explained the non-movement and drag in that past few episodes). The more eps will give it a chance to pull up as it goes. Little did they know it did start out well enough and it’s a shame that this whole conflict of interests happened because those first 4 episodes were the best ones ever. Oh and also there were objections to his casting choice too, particularly Kim Gab Soo, who almost wasn’t going to play Daesung.

Anyway, it was quite a lengthy message to all the fans that showed how much drama has been going on behind the scene.

Your right the plot is moving slow. However I’m still enjoying it. I feel that Ki Hoon is seriously annoying the crap out of me and Eun Jo is not progressing as much as she should… it’s frustrating but I guess I’m still enjoying it.

*applause* Excellent recap, Javabeans. It is to your credit that even though I’m only “watching” this drama through your site, I’m getting an intensely visceral experience from your words and the images you’ve captured. Amazing.

So, Seo Woo really brought it in this episode, didn’t she? LMS is always a goddess–that’s a given–but Seo Woo really gave her a run for her money this time around. The images alone gave me the chills. This episode takes psychological warfare to a whole new level, a frightening place where people start to go crazy really quickly. I hope neither woman ends up mentally ill because of this cognitive and emotional dissonance. Yikes. Anyway, I can’t say anything else about the Hyo-sun/Kang-sook situation that Javabeans hasn’t already said , so I’ll just say a big fat WORD to everything.

As for Eun-jo and Ki-hoon…igh. Not interested. And I realized that I’ve spent my last three/four posts on CU recaps ranting about Ki-hoon, which is rather obnoxious of me. My apologies, fellow posters! No more Ki-hoon rants from me, I promise!

Last, but certainly not least, can I just say that I am loving the Eun-jo/Ki-jung dymanic? There’s the Eun-jo I know and love! Now THIS is a sub-plot I can get behind. Corporate warfare between two equals. Two intelligent, driven first-borns who are determined to bring their family empires out on top, at the expense of each other’s corporate dynasties. Grit and ruthless willpower. Ki-jung is a mastermind, but he really messed up when he underestimated Eun-jo. He has fudged with the wrong woman, and now she is going to Bring The Pain. Aw, yeah!

OK, lastly for realz [WARNING: fan-girl ahead] I am bothered by how outrageously attractive I find Ki-jung. Like, really attractive. It makes me feel shallow because he’s a bastard, but I want to start making makgulli so he can annex my company in a hot takeover. I mean, HOSTILE takeover. Sorry. Don’t mind me, yous guys. I’m just in town for the Ki-jung Platter.

@3
didnt get to read that message and never knew it existed but that is an interesting tidbit. and i agree, those first 4 episodes were my favorite!

the whole, “Just let this go, quietly. Don’t do a thing.” reminded me a lot of what kangsook told hyosun in one of the first few episodes. it literally is payback with kangsook’s own medicine.

although i felt really invested in the first few episodes, starting to feel like i just want to see the last two episodes and see how it ends. then again, it is nearly the end. man, i wonder how the actor’s tear ducts feel. they probably have the most tired tear ducts out of all the actors in the drama industry right now.

this episode (and 16 too, but i’ll wait for girlfriday’s take on it) left me feeling weirded out, pissed off and so out of it with CS. like i really told myself, “okay what the hell did you invest yourself in, in this drama?”

i found the hyo-sun change-of-character weird, sort of out-of-plot, but the plot WAS getting mundane and flat that maybe this was the necessary shift after all. EJ and KH we-can’t-be-together is starting to irk me too, cos i don’t really see a basis anymore in why they cant – other than yeah, she keeps pushing him away.

and yes JB! thank you for pointing out Dong Soo! so i’m not the only one who keep going huhhh to his character, knowing he’s suddenly a Crucial Role but not knowing why. maybe 16 might shed some light, or 17. but i don’t know.

i’m still hopeful though about CS and initially whenever you wrote about out-tuning (sort of, kind of) from this drama i’d disagree …but this week. man oh man i think i know what you feel.

**** first off thanks for the recap — you guys work hard on it **
well what do i have to say for this drama – Not much!! I’m getting exhausted over the drama already- it was interesting up until episode 4 now it’s has just become draggy and the story line is getting Nowhere. I’m only following this drama because i’ve invested so much time for it 14 ep at least so i just felt the need to continue but just not watching the complete episodes just bits and pieces. For those of you are still following the drama would hate me for this but – it just lose it for me none of the relationships is getting anywhere (no growth whatsoever) and now we’re up to 16 and we are still at square one w/ the exception of Deasung sad
This drama had a lot of potential but too bad

@ 5
Lahlita, I was about to make a huge statement about Ki Jung’s sexiness, but you said it all for me, thank you 😀

I’ve been seeing a lot of people saying that they’re tired of this drama; but I’m not. I don’t know why I keep coming back for it. I guess I’m just emotionally attached to this drama.

And, oh my! What happened to Chun Jung Myung’s beautiful eyes in this episode?! It looks like somebody just Geum Jandi’d his peepers! 🙁

I’m starting to hate Hyo Sun all over again. This episode reminded me of how fake she could be. Like Ki Hoon said, she’s good at warming people’s hearts…but is she sincere?

Back when her dad was alive, she cried for her sister, begging for her not to die; but wishing in her mind that Eun Jo could just die. That sends shivers down my spine. Then, she blamed Eun Jo for her dad’s death and hated her, but she still wanted sympathy from her.

*shudders* i just can’t stand people like her, no matter how pitiful they are

it’s amazing when you sit and think about all the things that happen behind the scenes….even those who have been in theatre or perform musically or otherwise know that many things can change the the participants need to just adapt with that they’ve been given.

i, too enjoyed the more fairytale feel that the initial director brought to this drama and moreover it was what i expected. i know cinderella has been done time and time again and this is a different twist but it’s that magical aspect that gave this dark portrayal less weight and gave your heart the strength to keep watching through the struggles the characters were living through.

i also agree this turn of events would have been much better placed earlier…i’ve been waiting for Hyo-sun to become the cinderella that’s seeking revenge but instead she was an unfulfilled young woman who expressed herself with immaturity and a tendency to whine! i like this Hyo-sun better because her reaction to Kang-sook is valid and believable based on the kind of character they have (slowly) developed with her.

it’s sad that this show had to suffer some behind-the-scenes drama but let’s hope they can redeem themselves to at least leave us with some good memories!

as always the acting is phenom!! these guys are fabtastic…just wish the storyline matched their professionalism and skill.

Still not sure why I like Cinderella’s Sister so much, but I loved this episode, merely for Hyo-sun and Kang-sook (I kind of could have done without Eun-jo and Ki-hoon, though I know they’re necessary). I was worried at the end of the last episode and the beginning of this one that they wouldn’t make Hyo-sun do anything (seriously, that fake-out had me screaming at my laptop) but as the episode went on and Hyo-sun manipulated Kang-sook, I couldn’t help but grin. Humorous yet very sad at the same time. After that I kind of tuned out, but the Hyo-sun/Kang-sook running scene and Kang-sook carrying Hyo-sun on her back were probably some of the best in the drama since, you know, ever.

I gave up on Ki-hoon and Eun-jo ages ago, so I’m always irritated when Eun-jo gets jealous or is sad that he’s leaving. If you keep pushing him away even though you know he wants to be with you, what do you keep getting so worked up about? I understand Eun-jo’s about a half step away from crazy with just about everything in her life, but she needs to get over it.

@3 Thanks for explaining that because that explains a lot of the slow plot that has been going on. Sure, the first four episodes were fairytale like, but it was a hell of a lot better than this really messed up revenge plot they have going on. I wonder how it would have turned out if the directors hadn’t switched.

I agree with everything you said, this episode made me want to see more of a pairing between Eun-jo/Ki-jung than her with ki-hoon. i think ki-jung and her have something that would have been great to see if this episode had been done earlier as javebeans said it would have made a bigger impact. and maybe they might have developed a better pairing with Eun-jo/Ki-jung because they to me have more of a chemistry than i seen with her and ki-hoon.

i really just waiting to see how it ends, the first episodes were great but than nothing really happens the charactors didn’t grow in a faster pace as we hoped it they would.

I too felt that the first 4 episodes made the show, they were refreshing and everything seemed to fall into place beautifully and “naturally”.

It does seem that after ep 4, the drama lost its uniqueness and followed the format of a classic melodrama, minus the usual focus/attention on the “lead” couple. Now finding out that there was a change of director, it makes sense. I was a bit disappointed with the last few episodes, maybe the editing felt sloppy or rushed while the scenes are long and slow? It’s as if the characters were already in place for their scenes and we could hear “action”…the scenes do not seem to flow from one to the other, it’s like “cut”, “next”…like when EJ is walking, shouting for JW, and there he is, calmly coming out from around the corner…was he just there all along?

As much as I have grown to love HS and KS with the last episodes, and I appreciate all the characters having weight in the story, it does feel that EJ and KH have taken a backseat. Everything is so focused on HS, even EJ is now all about HS. Cinderealla’s sister has become a supporting character it seems. In the past there was a balance between the two, while EJ seemed to be the heroine, HS was always there. But now, yes, it does seem to have shifted. Will it shift again in the next episodes or find balance again? And poor JW, now I understand what Taecyeon meant when he said he’s really not part of the love quadruple, he’s just kind of there. It’s true. JW is just kind of there (waiting around the corner?).

For me as well, CS lately has not been as grabbing as it used to be, maybe because I’m not sure what I’m hoping for anymore, but like an addict, I’ll still be watching and waiting for more.

I feel like I’m reading an essay which, judging from the first 40 pages, could go on for 100 pages but is going to stop at 50. This essay has slow development but contains arguments of some points that are analyzed in detail and beautifully crafted. However some points that seem essential to answering the question were written sloppily and hence the essay seems to be going awfully off point. The title of this essay should have been “Cinderella and her stepsister” or maybe “Cinderella and her family”, since the writer devotes so much time and effort on developing the character Cinderella and indeed, the paragraphs involving Cinderella’s growing-up story were nicely written. However, it seems like the stepsister character is becoming more and more redundant, the character prince KH has been ruined and the character prince JW has been ignored. I feel like I’ve been cheated out of the emotions that I have invested into reading the essay, thinking that the essay is about the stepsister given the title “Cinderella’s sister”, but I just can’t bring myself to stop reading this essay because it is a good essay and the stepsister is still mentioned now and then. I’m wondering, does anyone share the same frustration as me?

I’m loving how Kang-sook is written and acted out. Kudos to Lee Mi-sook! However, I do have complaints about Seo Woo’s acting. Her screams, her glares, her actions seriously scare the hell out of me (great acting there) but her tears just didn’t manage to touch my heart. Whenever she starts crying or wailing, I feel like slapping her and shouting at her “the world doesn’t revolve around you so stop being a baby!” But seeing many compliments about her acting in the crying scenes, I’m starting to think maybe I have a heart made out of stone.

Thank you for the recap!!
I think this drama would have been a heck of a lot better as a 16 episode story. there just isn’t enough material.

@5 Lahlita
I agree with everything you said! Seo Woo was really amazing in this. I was sad for her one moment and then scared of her the next. I can’t believe that girl from Tamra can look so much like a serial killer/ghost from a horror movie. I love how the power shifted. Hyo-sun is now in Kangsook’s shoes and Kangook is now in Eunjo’s shoes and Eunjo has stepped into Hyo-sun’s shoes as the oblivious one. Their scenes really had my heart pumping. I think after this episode, Hyo-sun has officially ousted Eunjo as the character to really watch.

I am also feeling the Ki-jung/Eunjo love. It was awesome when Eunjo one-upped Kijung. The chemistry between Eunjo and Kihoon after the 8 year break has been lost, especially with Eunjo pushing him away all the time and getting all petty when he does step away. and ki-hoon has become a bummer. WHen he steps into the picture, things go “wtf?”.

@ Lahlita
Just wanna share this: Go Se Won, the actor playing Hong Ki Jung, acted in the first few eps of Three Brothers. His birthday is listed as 1979-Dec-13 but in Star Golden Bell this year, I think I remembered he said it wasn’t true – it’s 1977 actually.

holy smokes loving the vicious hyo-sun!!! woah! the almighty kang-sook is no match for her when she even won against God and Budhha! now hyo-sun is definitely something!!! and i heart<3 the end part, now eun-jo knows that ki-hoon is the one of the member of the hong ju family who wants to take over the family business, i'm dying to know what she'll (and if hyo-sun finds out too!!!) do with him… i'm sensing that all hell will break loose next episode!!! can't wait!!!!:D

She did fantastic in the recent few eps (15 and 16)! She really got into the character and i guess in some ways, her character has grown out of the immature frame in the earlier episodes. There is more display of sensibilty and awareness of the feelings of the pple around her. A splendid transformation 🙂

And kudos to Lee Mi Sook! Its veteran and seasoned actors like her that increases the watchablity of dramas. A character like KS could have become a one dimensional caricature of an evil stepmother but LMS brought some complexity to it, making us ACTUALLY sympathising her(even if its only for a few fleeting moments).

I thought Seo Woo was super awesome in this ep. HS reaaallly freaked me out. I wouldn’t want to be caught in any sort of tangle with her!

I also thought the EJ and Ki-jung confrontation/”showdown” would be more spectacular, considering how they can both be equally cold and snarky. And they kinda look good together, huh? haha, ok ok wishful thinking on my part that this show will branch out and surprise us somehow..

Ah but all said and done, I’m still the sucker who sits around with viikii on my laptop screen waiting for the next ep. Ah well!

thanks javabeans!
i still really love this drama
of course, the first 4 episodes were the best but i dont feel majorly unhappy with it or anything
i am just not a very critical watcher, i guess
and once i connect to a drama i will continue, regardless of if it is awful (which i personally dont think this is)
i am still invested in the characters, though i do wish the rest of the drama could have been like ep1-4, cause they were so amazing
i was still sad when eun jo was upset about ki hoon, even though she has rejected him so much- i cant help but love her and want her to be happy all the time…
anyway, thanks heaps

I saw the translated PD message from some Chinese websites. Anyway, everyone noticed that the drama has a complete change of style/direction after episode 4. So I guessed the PD’s message is true in some way. And in his message, he said thank you to every actor/actress (even the supporting ones) except SW. So this sounded strange as well. But since this is only a translated message (which can be distorted). And no one know whether the message is geniune or not.

There were rumours that HS’s scenes had been increased due to request from the investors of this drama (who is supposed to be the supporter of SW) while KH and EJ’s scenes had been cut.

But to be honest, if you are MGY’s or CJM’s fans, you must feel very frustrated and disappointed in watching this drama as their scenes are repetitive scenes/lines (after ep 4). Who would like to watch the same lines so many times? Their characters are being damaged. And it is weird that there was so little air time for the main lead couple. The spoilers of this drama are usually the only scenes/airtime between KH and EJ in each episodes. They are used for attracting the attention of the viewers but the story development does not relate to them. They appeared more like supporting actor and actress and have become the most unloved main lead couple.

2PM’s TY is supposed to be the second male lead, but I feel sorry for him that he has so few scenes in this drama. Even KJ has more important scenes than JW. But at least JW’s character is loved by viewers.

I am not saying that the story cannot be developed in the family direction. But as J mentioned, it is no longer “Cinderella’s sister”, it is “Cinderella and her stepsister”. No it should be “Cinderella and her enermies” since everyone around her cheated her and in some way, caused her father’s death. HS is the “poorest” and should be “sympathized” and “loved”. But sorry, I just cannot feel for HS or SW. I have a “stone heart” as well.

like everyone else i really wish this part would have happened earlier . i totally loved hyo sun in this episode but from all the dragging and stuff i couldn’t get myself to sympathies or to connect with her emotions .
@ 3 the first 4 ep were the BEST EVER !! idk why they changed whatever they changed because the drama went downhill after that though i kept watching because of curiousty and moon geun young is just awesome and now am hesitant to follow the drama . i keep watching half heartedly . shame

thanks for the recap javabeans! since ep 13 i’ve been following along with the recaps. moments like the ones in this episode i actually would’ve loved to have seen, but i just can’t take how frustrating this drama is anymore.

the first four episodes were so totally pitch-perfect, if only. who is in charge of the direction the story takes, though, the pd and not the script-writers? or do the latter just write the lines and flesh it out? whether the pd or the scriptwriters, i wish they’d have enough, i don’t know, integrity in their work to keep believing in the original vision they come up with, instead of shifting it around to suit viewers on whim. when you’re watching a drama you become involved in that world and think of it as a real, complete other world. when it starts shifting and changing, even while watching it you become aware that it’s not a real world but a set-up being manipulated from the outside. they’re not characters with personalities of their own, they’re puppets being jerked in response to the audience’s jeers and cheers. except, if only they’d listened to the audience who loved the original four episodes so much. i wonder how the ratings are being affected.

Judy when I read the first part of your comment I don’t think you have a stonned heart but you just love MGY more than SW (I even think you somewhat don’t like SW and her character in the drama like most of people during the four first episodes).
Too bad because the actress is as good as MGY.

And I think I am in the minority but I feel the four first episodes of the drama are overrated. People talk too much about it (I think they love it so much mainly because of KH and EJ). It was the good time when everyone rooted for EJ/MGY and KH/CJM and p….d on HS/SW (nice girl is bad…). For example I think episode 5, 7, 10, 11, 15, 16 are better than the so called “1-4” episodes. They are not bad with or without EJ/KH couple.
The only negativ point to me is JW’s character who is pretty useless…

what a shame there had to be a pd/director change after ep4 coz like many of you here, ep 1- 4 pretty much sealed my love for this drama, with a cherry on top! Now, despite the extremely slooow plot, I am pleased with the HS and KS dynamic.. EJ/KH are pretty much just meh for me now, I’m almost not expecting the now, farfetched Happy ever EunJo-Kihoon ending.. also JW, what a waste I liken him to Jung Il woo’s character Lee TaeYoon in MFL. had potential but it wan’t properly utilised.. stank!
Hah! i too thought, omg wouldn’t it be smashing if Kijung and Eunjo amidst being the cold-hearted ambitious people they are met their match in each other and had some sort of side story.. No? Ok! I understand, This drama refuses to give us a sliver of hope for romanticism.. This drama, too, also has a Stone.Cold.Heart

Maybe I react like this because I have never been “Hoopla zoopla” about EJ and KH. Good I am not in the complaining majority and I can enjoy the drama more (especially the interraction between the sisters and HS and KS).

from the early episodes, i’ve sense the innocent of this cute innocent puppy would turn out to be complex and interesting. and just as i’m about to think i was wrong, there!! at last. this is the most interesting part of the drama i think. the 2nd interesting part is the EJ+HS relation.. i dont really care about the EJ+KH anymore..

Yeah, I heard that the people who were investing in it wanted more Seo Woo scenes, and then the director got upset because they were messing up everything he planned. And that’s why the first 4 episodes were amazing and the rest of it isn’t as great.

I think you may have misunderstood a little what Judy and I were frustrated about. I’m not sure how Judy’s going to argue her case but in my opinion, the drama has lost its focus. As I have mentioned in comment #23, the drama is named “Cinderella’s Sister” which gives viewers the impression that the story should be about the stepsister, so the drama should focus most on the growth and development of the stepsister character whereas the other characters’ development should somehow be affecting and be affected by the stepsister’s growth. However, HS has now become central to this drama and nearly every storyline revolves around her – which led me to concluding that the drama should have been titled “Cinderella and her stepsister”. I’m not saying that I dislike the interaction between the sisters and the KS-HS dynamics; the scenes were well-written (we see the growth in the 2 ladies and also the bonding of the 2 most important people in EJ’s life). But I personally feel that the screenwriter could have used much more effort to develop EJ. Look at the comments here and at soompi forum – viewers are not just sympathizing with HS; many are even irked by the stagnation of EJ’s character and some are not even concerned about what’s going to happen to EJ. Slow development and repetitive lines and scenes aside, the screenwriter has failed to make viewers empathize with the main character. From this, I feel the screenwriter has failed miserably in her writing. Sorry for being so harsh!

I’m a bit surprised Eunjo never googled Kihoon while he was gone for those 8 years and try to find some information about him. Wasn’t his family famous enough to get the media poking around since the brothers in the beginning of the series were like ‘go away. don’t attract attention’? but then i forgot..these characters live in a bubble of their angst. *sigh*

as much as i’m enjoying the Hyo-sun development, I’m a bit sad that hte investors are the ones demanding more Hyo-sun scenes. i can’t see that fostering affection between people working on this drama.

=/ sigh. i’m getting kind of weary with CS. its just so angsty and sad that when i read the recaps i feel it. and its not like ki hoon and eun jo is basking under the sunlight together with their handmade picnic on a unknown beach. sooo… i wonder if the ending of the show is gonna be like sad and angsty too. sigh. now i know the change in all the character, i want to move on. like finally eun jo lightens up, kang sook gets her punishment, hyo sun joins with eun jo to glorify the business, ki hoon to make his big statement and join on eunjo’s side. jung woo… can stay as he is. but, you know. something more upbeat. even the colours seen in the scene makes me dull and sad and weary. in contrast, coffee house really picks up my attention. nevertheless i still do appreciate a ploty plot kind of thing. its been a while to see such a ploty plot. and the title is so good to work with. i’m not really a analytic kind of person towards drama.but much of it. i still get it.. sigh. but i’ll perserve with the recaps! =]

Okay, so I like the change in Hyo-sun. It’s funny how a lot of people used to hate her, but with her joining the dark side, they’re all like “YAY Hyo-sun”. I like the change too, but I never hated her so much as pity her. Poor kid.

Anyways, I want to see what happens after Hyo-sun confronts Eun-jo…. And I want Eun-jo to end up with Ki-jung. Wait, what?! Well come on, either get things going with Eun-jo and Ki-hoon, or else I really will want the KJ/EJ relationship going (even though I already think Ki-jung is HOT!)….

I think the problem I have with most of CS’s fans too is since they are sometimes biased toward MGY and EJ, they want EJ with every men in the drama. Before it was KH (it is still is but EJ must hook with other males here) after people wanted her with JW (he sticks too much with EJ that his character is onesided, useless and uninteresting) now it is KJ (please people leave his character alone because I love him so much that I don’t want him wasted by EJ stoic and overly cold character…look at KH and JW). No wonder in my opinion HS is more interesting than EJ. Her character is not necessarly linked to any man (it is the first time I read people talking about a second female lead character mainly about her relationship with the other female characters). Yes she deals with men but you get another feeling than “romance”. Therefore they are so into EJ with every men in the drama that when it does not happen like they want they complain and talk about overrated 1-4 episodes.

I know you are a fan of SW since you have reacted every time anyone said something not so nice about SW.

I must clarified that I only repeated what was mentioned in the Bai du website.

The main actor/actress are usually the center of attention for a drama. But this drama has changed since ep 4. It has lost focus. The script writer wanted to tell so many things – love between sisters, DS and EJ’s fartherly love, DS and KS ‘s love story, KS and EJ’s motherly love, business competition between DS and Hong Ju, Hong Ju’s family competition and lastly the love lines between KH and HS and between KH and EJ. And because there are so many things to tell that this had led to slow development in every lines of the story. Not to mention that script writer liked to repeat some of these lines/scenes again and again.

And now a new line between HS and KS and also HS’s illness. So how can script writer wrap up all these unfinished stories in the next 4 episodes? How about Dong Soo? How about JW? How about KH’s brother and father? How about Mr Jang? How about KS’s lady friend and possibly EJ’s father? How about KS? Will HS die of cancer? So what the story line is supposed to be? Script writer – can you give me some direction? I was lost. And where is EJ and KH – are they main leads?

Some viewers in Bai du joked that this drama is like a daily series – for its slowness. And some thought that it has to be a 40-episode drama if there are so many unfinished stories. But it is only a 20-episode drama. The next 4 episodes must be super fast in the story development since the script writer has constipated for weeks and weeks – “Not girlfriday or the viewers”.

Maybe this is the style of this script writer. I suddenly found that a few years ago, I watched “Say you love me” (when I was a fan of KRW) which was written by the same script writer and I completely hated that story development as well. It was also a waste of the cast. The story got a good start in the beginning episodes but turned completely strange. The pace was also slow for no reason. Even the main lead actor and actress eventually got together but you could no longer love them anymore because their characters were so soured and damaged already.

I tried a few episodes of Piano but could not tolerate its slowness and story lines. I dare not try “Spring Day” because there were so many bad comments on the story development when it was aired. I cannot understand why Piano and Spring Day were so popular back then.

So the lesson for me is to avoid this script writer going forward. He/she is not my cup of tea.

I am not sure if CS’s PD has any responsibility for the strange development of this drama. Is he a well-known PD? Probably not as famous as the script writer.

But the cinematography of a few important scenes (e.g. ep 1- chasing scenes, ep 3 – EJ ah under the moonlight, ep 4 – the storeroom scene, ep 6 – the scene tha EJ was drunk and slept in the storeroom, ep 8 – JW’s running scene and ep 15 – crying scenes between EJ and KH) are really nice and romantic. The standard is even better than a lot of the movies. I hope this director can focus on love stories drama in the future.

Finally, reading the commenths, its nice to see that I am no the only one who has falling for this smexy KJ.
God, I whish to tha EJ ends up with KJ instead with KH who is for me from the beginning a boring character, and I never could feel any chemistry between him an EJ.
In Ep. 15 the scences with EJ meeting the first time KJ had more chemistry than the scenes EJ/KH all the 14 episode before. So I dont even care if EJ will not end up with KH. Hopefully also not HS.

I loved this episode very much, as finally Seo Woo had more scenes. I enjoyed her acting very much. Every scene with her and LMS was great. I had the feeling they both enjoyed playing those secenes very much.

Anyway, all the main female characters are the best in this drama. LMS, MGY and SW, I am a huge fan of this three actresses. And having all of them in one drama is for me a must to watch CS.

I am looking forward fo the FINAL and wonder how these 3 women will end up in this nice drama.

“I am not sure if CS’s PD has any responsibility for the strange development of this drama. Is he a well-known PD? Probably not as famous as the script writer.

But the cinematography of a few important scenes (e.g. ep 1- chasing scenes, ep 3 – EJ ah under the moonlight, ep 4 – the storeroom scene, ep 6 – the scene tha EJ was drunk and slept in the storeroom, ep 8 – JW’s running scene and ep 15 – crying scenes between EJ and KH) are really nice and romantic. The standard is even better than a lot of the movies. I hope this director can focus on love stories drama in the future.”

In regards to the directions, he mentioned that for 1-4, he was the head PD and after the investor’s meddling, he was pushed to an assistant role while someone else took the lead. Maybe that’s why throughout the rest of the episodes we can still see glimpses of the similar directing style with the scenes that you mentioned. Perhaps those are the ones he did?